This invention relates to sleeves and album pages for holding flat items such as compact discs and photographs, and more particularly to such sleeves and pages including a write-on capability.
Flexible plastic sleeves for holding a compact disc (or CD) are well known, as are flexible plastic album pages for holding photographs as well as CDs. Such sleeves and pages may be conventionally constructed of two or more rectangular superposed transparent flexible plastic sheets heat welded together along their edges and having an opening in one or both of the outermost sheets, creating a pocket into which the CD or photograph may be inserted through the opening.
Examples of such CD sleeves and album pages are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,186,320, to Terrence M. Drew, in which a sheet of heat weldable non-woven material is positioned between two transparent thermoplastic sheets, and the three superposed sheets are heat welded along their edges. An opening in each of the two outer sheets permits entry of a CD into a pocket between each transparent plastic sheet and the non-woven material. U.S. Pat. No. 6,186,320 is incorporated herein by reference.
A write-on capability may be provided for the sleeve or page. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,396,987, to James M. Temple et al., discloses a CD sleeve having two spaced-apart openings along the sleeve""s top edge section for removably inserting an elongated alphanumeric/graphic card identifying a CD to be inserted into the pocket; U.S. Pat. No. 5,396,987 is incorporated herein by reference. Such insertable title strip appears to be shown also in FIG. 4 of the aforementioned Drew U.S. Pat. No. 6,186,320. Des. U.S. Pat. No. 434,262 to James A. Bergh et al., appears to show two write-on strips respectively overlying both sides of the top edge section of a CD sleeve and secured thereto.
The present invention provides a strip of a weldable synthetic paper, having a write-on capability, welded between the two outer flexible thermoplastic sheets of a double-sided sleeve or album page, each of the outer sheets being provided with a window exposing an area on each side of the strip for permitting access to a person for writing on the exposed area of the strip. The structure of the sleeve according to the present invention provides a lightweight, non-bulky double-sided sleeve with a permanently captive synthetic paper strip having exposed write-on areas in positional association with the respective pockets for permitting notation concerning the temporal contents of each such pocket. The portions of the outer sheets covering the unexposed areas of the strip protect such unexposed areas from damage and spoilage.
According to one aspect of the present invention, a sleeve is provided for holding flat items such as compact discs and photographs, comprising in combination: a flexible first sheet, a flexible second sheet, and a flexible third sheet interposed between the first and second sheets, the first, second and third sheets welded together to form a pocket between the first and third sheets including an opening in the first sheet for receiving a flat item, and to form a pocket between the second and third sheets including an opening in the second sheet for receiving a flat item; a synthetic paper strip interposed between and welded to the first and second sheets; a window through the first sheet exposing an area of the synthetic paper strip; and a window through the second sheet exposing an area of the synthetic paper strip. The three sheets and the synthetic paper strip are preferably of heat-weldable plastic, and the third sheet is preferably of a weldable, non-laminated, non-woven material.
The windows afford access to the exposed areas of the synthetic paper strip for being written upon, such as for identifying a flat item such as a compact disc or photograph which may be contained in the associated pocket. The windows are preferably in superposed relation, and the synthetic paper strip may be welded to the first and second sheets along the superposed windows.
The dimensions of the first sheet of the sleeve are substantially the same as the dimensions of the second sheet, while the third sheet has a height dimension less than the height dimension of the first sheet. The third sheet is welded along its top edge to and between the first and second sheets, and the synthetic paper strip is welded along its top lengthwise edge to the top edges of the first and second sheets. In preferred embodiments, the synthetic paper strip may be welded along its bottom lengthwise edge to the top edge of the third sheet, and the strip may also or alternatively be welded along its bottom edge to and between the first and second sheets.
According to another aspect of the present invention, an album page is provided for holding flat items such as compact discs or photographs, comprising in combination: a flexible first sheet, a flexible second sheet, and a flexible third sheet interposed between the first and second sheets, the three sheets welded together to form at least one pocket between the first and third sheets including an opening in the first sheet for receiving a flat item in each of the at least one pocket, and to form at least one other pocket between the second and third sheets including an opening in the second sheet for receiving a flat item in each of the at least one other pocket; a synthetic paper strip interposed between and welded to the first and second sheets adjacent to the pockets; at least one window through the first sheet exposing at least one area of the synthetic paper strip in respective positional association with the at least one pocket; at least one window through the second sheet exposing at least one area of the synthetic paper strip in respective positional association with the at least one other pocket.
The windows through the first sheet are preferably in superposed relation with the windows through the second sheet, respectively. Weld-seals may be provided along the superposed windows, welding the synthetic paper strip to the first and second sheets along the superposed windows.